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Discover a new level of picture-taking performance with the Sony Alpha DSLR-A550. This versatile digital SLR comes packed with an array of helpful features that makes it easy to explore your creative side. You can tilt the high-resolution LCD to snap pictures with a different point of view. Or, capture crystal clear photos in challenging low-light conditions thanks to enhanced, on-board noise reduction. The 'A550's advanced CMOS sensor delivers stunningly detailed 14.2-megapixel images for printing gorgeous photo enlargements. The supplied 18-55mm Sony zoom lens gives you crisp pics and versatile, all around performance for everyday use.

3" high-res tilt-screen LCD for easier shooting
Unlike some digital SLRs, the 'A550 gives you two ways to compose and shoot your pictures. You can frame your photos with the camera's traditional optical viewfinder. A handy autofocus feature begins focusing your picture as soon as you bring your eye to the viewfinder  no need to press down the shutter-release button halfway. Or, spot your subjects and frame your shots using the responsive live view LCD, just like you would with a point-and-shoot camera. The LCD's tilt-screen design lets you adjust it up or down for creative shooting from tricky high or low angles, and its exceptional resolution gives you a clear window to check for critical focus on fine details.

Built-in image stabilization for blur-free pictures
The 'A550's built-in image stabilization technology minimizes blurry pictures caused by accidental camera movement. This system physically shifts the position of the image sensor to compensate for camera shake, maintaining optimum picture sharpness. Because the system is built into the camera instead of the lens, you can take advantage of its benefits with any lens you use. And your images will look spotless thanks to anti-dust technology that uses ultrasonic vibration to shake dust off the sensor.

Capture fantastic, high-speed action sequences
Sony's sophisticated image processor provides near-instant camera startup and shutter response. It also makes it possible to shoot images continuously at up to five fps (frames per second) using the viewfinder, or four fps with the LCD in live view mode. A special Speed Priority mode even lets you capture shots at a blazing seven fps for high-quality photo sequences, like a horse and rider clearing the fence at a steeplechase or the expressions on your child's face when she blows out the candles on her birthday cake.

Supplied Accessories:

Develop your photography hobby

You don't have to be an expert photographer to use an SLR  they all offer easy automatic shooting. Because of their build quality and the physics of good glass and large sensors, even their built-in automatic settings will get you better pictures than most point-and-shoots or mobile devices. But experienced photographers and budding hobbyists can get more creative by manually adjusting settings like aperture and shutter speed. SLRs let you expand your shooting options with additional lenses and flashes to suit just about any situation. If you'd like to record the occasional video, look for a model with high-def movie mode.

Recording Features

Tiltable 3.0" LCD Screen: The DSLR-A550 uses a 3" TFT
Xtra Fine LCD screen
with 921,600 pixels, and Sony's Clear Photo LCD display technology. The LCD can be tilted 90°
up or down to help you frame high and low angle shots that would otherwise be
hit or miss. You can switch the camera to Live View to frame your shots using
the 3" LCD. If you're using the optical viewfinder to frame your shots, the LCD
displays the camera's recording information. The LCD turns off automatically
when you bring the camera up to your eyes.

Optical Viewfinder: The fixed eye-level penta-Dach-mirror
optical viewfinder provides approximately 95% field of view. In addition, it offers viewfinder
magnification of 0.8x (with 50 mm lens at infinity), allowing you to see an image nearer to its actual size. The DSLR-A550
comes with an eyepiece cover which can help shield against light entering the
camera and prevent exposure errors.

Versatile Recording Formats: Images can be captured in the
following modes:

RAW

RAW+JPEG (Fine)

JPEG (Fine and Standard)

Dual Media Options: The DSLR-A550 camera accepts two types
of media for capturing still images: Memory Stick PRO Duo (including Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo) up
to 16 GB, and SD and SDHC Memory Cards up to 32 GB. The maximum number of images that can be recorded on a memory card formatted
with this camera varies between the two types of media:

Capacity based on images taken at L 14M/Aspect Ratio:
3:2:

Memory Stick PRO Duo

Size \ Capacity

1 GB

2 GB

4 GB

8 GB

16 GB

Standard

213

451

893

1796

3642

Fine

151

319

633

1273

2582

RAW & JPEG

43

92

184

370

752

RAW

61

131

260

523

1062

SD & SDHC Memory Card

Size \ Capacity

1 GB

2 GB

4 GB

8 GB

16 GB

Standard

222

442

890

1793

3642

Fine

181

361

727

1465

2975

RAW & JPEG

51

103

209

423

860

RAW

72

146

295

595

1210

Image Sensor: The DSLR-A550 features
an APS-C Exmor CMOS image sensor (23.4 x 15.6mm). It has approximately
14.6-million total pixels and 14.2-million effective pixels.

Image Sizes: You can record
still images in a 3:2 or 16:9 aspect ratio. The image sizes include:

SteadyShot INSIDE In-Camera Image Stabilization: Building on years of
expertise, Sony has developed a body-integrated image stabilization solution for
the DSLR-A550. The SteadyShot INSIDE in-camera image stabilizer actually shifts
the image sensor to compensate for camera shake without sacrificing image
quality. The compensation effect is equal to as many as four shutter speed
steps, giving you more creative freedom when shooting in low light. And, because
it is integrated into the camera body, SteadyShot INSIDE technology works with
all compatible α (alpha) system lenses.

Smart Teleconverter: In the Quick Auto Focus Live View mode, you can
extend the optical zoom of the lens with a digital zoom. One touch zooms in at
1.4x, while a second touch advances to 2x zoom. The system reproduces pixels on
a 1:1 basis so there's no degradation in picture quality.

9-Point AF System: The A550's high-performance autofocus
system uses 9 focus points to deliver fast and precise focusing. You can choose from the following
Auto/Manual Focus Modes:

AF (Auto focus) Mode: You can select between 3 modes:

Single-Shot AF:
The camera focuses and the focus is locked when you press the
shutter button halfway down.

Continuous AF:
The camera continues to focus while the shutter button is pressed
and held halfway down.

Automatic AF:
This mode automatically switches between single-shot AF and
continuous AF depending on the movement of the subject.

AF (Auto focus) Area: You can select between 3 settings:

Wide:
The camera determines which of the nine local focus frames is used
in focusing with the wide focus frame.

Spot: The camera uses the AF area located in the
center area exclusively.

Local: You can choose a local focus
area from the 9 areas using the controller.

Manual Focus: When it is difficult to get the proper focus in auto focus mode, you can adjust
the focus manually. This mode allows you to set the distance of a subject by
rotating the focusing ring of the lens to achieve a sharp focus.

Focus Lock: If a subject is
off-center and outside of the AF area, you can lock the focus of the camera.

AF Illuminator: When you press the shutter button halfway
down a red illuminator is emitted until the focus is locked. Under dark lighting
conditions or when you shoot a low contrast subject, the AF illuminator allows
the camera to focus more easily on the subject. The AF illuminator has a range of
approximately 3.3 to 16.4 feet.

Drive Modes:
The camera offers the
following shooting modes:

Single Shot Advance: Default setting for standard picture taking.

Shooting Continuously: When you press and hold the shutter button, the camera
records the images continuously at a maximum 5 images per second (4 ips in
Live View mode) when set to High, and a maximum of three images per second
when set to Low. The
maximum number of continuous shots varies with the recording format:

RAW: 14 images

RAW & JPEG: 7 images

Fine: 32 images

Standard: 116 images

Speed Priority Continuous: In this mode, the camera shoots
continuously at a maximum of seven images per second. The exposure and focus
are set at the first shot. This mode is not available when using Scene
Selection modes (except Sports Action). Face Detection may slow the speed of
continuous shooting.

Self-Timer:
You can set the camera to two different self-timers:

10 Second: After you press the shutter button, the shutter will be
released about 10 seconds later. This is convenient when the
photographer wants to appear in a photo.

2 Second:
After you press the shutter button, the shutter will be released about 2
seconds later. This is convenient to reduce camera-shake.

Exposure Bracket:
The camera can shoot three continuous images with the exposures shifted
automatically. It uses two settings:

White Balance Bracket Shooting:
Based on the selected white balance and color temperature, three pictures
are taken while automatically shifting the color temperature. One shot
records three frames of an image in following order - image with "normal
white balance", image with "paler colors", and image with "reddish colors".
The camera uses two settings for this feature:

Low: This setting shifts the white balance by 10 mired (a unit
to indicate the color conversion quality in color temperature filters)
when taking a picture.

High:
Shifts the white balance by 20 mired when taking a picture.

Wireless Remote Commander: You can shoot using the "SHUTTER" or
"2SEC" buttons on the optional RMT-DSLR1 Wireless Remote Commander. Using
the Remote Commander reduces camera shake and continues the exposure without
pressing and holding the shutter button.

Exposure Modes: The camera offers the following exposure
recording modes:

Night Portrait/View: for shooting portraits in night scenes, or
shooting night scenes at a distance without losing the dark atmosphere of
the surroundings.

Program Auto: This mode allows you to shoot with the
exposure adjusted automatically (both the shutter speed and the aperture
value), while keeping the custom settings for ISO sensitivity, Creative
Style, D-Range optimizer, etc.

Aperture Priority: This mode allows you to shoot after adjusting the aperture
value manually, letting the camera set the appropriate shutter speed. This
mode gives you greater control over the depth of field.

Shutter Speed Priority: This mode allows you to shoot
after adjusting the shutter speed manually, letting the camera set the
appropriate aperture. With a high shutter speed, the moving subject appears as if
it is frozen on the image. With a slow shutter speed, the moving subject appears as if it were flowing.

Manual Exposure:
This mode allows you to shoot after adjusting the exposure (shutter speed
and aperture) manually.

Manual Shift:
You can change the shutter speed and aperture value combination without
changing the exposure in manual mode.

Bulb (Long Exposure) Shooting:
In this setting as long as the shutter button is pressed, the shutter
remains open. You can shoot trails of light, such as fireworks.

Smile Shutter: The A550's Smile Shutter function can detect
a smile on the subject, and automatically capture the shot. You can set the
sensitivity of the Smile Shutter function for detecting smiles to one of the
following three options: Slight Smile, Normal Smile, and Big Smile. The Smile
Shutter function only works when the camera is set to Autofocus in the Live View
mode.

Exposure Compensation: Exposure compensation is used to
alter the camera's standard exposure setting. You can make the image look
lighter (increased exposure) or darker (decreased exposure). The exposure
compensation amount can be set up to +/-2 EV in 1/3-step increments.

AE Lock: You
can fix the exposure before deciding on the composition when taking a picture.
This is effective when the metering object and focusing object are different or
when you want to shoot continuously while keep the same exposure value.

Metering Mode:
A 40-segment honeycomb sensing system provides multi-pattern measuring for
superior exposure control accuracy in a wide range of lighting conditions. You
can select the method for measuring the brightness of a subject from the
following three methods:

Center Weighted:
While emphasizing the central area of the screen, this method measure
the average brightness of the entire screen.

Spot: This method measure light only in the spot metering
circle in the center of the frame.

White Balance: You can adjust the color tones according to the
lighting conditions. You can choose from the following WB options:

Auto WB: This mode adjusts the white balance automatically.

Daylight: This mode adjusts for outdoors and sunlit subjects.

Shade: This mode adjust for shady conditions on a clear day.

Cloudy: This mode adjust for a cloudy sky.

Incandescent: This mode adjusts for incandescent
lighting.

Fluorescent: This mode adjusts for florescent lighting.

Flash: This mode adjusts for flash conditions.

Color Temperature/Color Filter: Sets the white balance
by the color temperature. The higher the number, the more reddish the image
and the lower the number, the more bluish the image.

Custom: In a scene where the ambient light consists of
multiple types of light sources, use of the custom white balance is
recommended in order to accurately reproduce the whiteness.

Image Processing (Creative Style): This camera is pre-programmed with image styles
optimal for various scenes and purposes. For each setting, you can adjust the
contrast, saturation, and sharpness. You can choose from the following settings:

Standard: This setting reproduces various scenes with rich
gradation and beautiful color.

Landscape:
This setting reproduces the scenery with vivid and sharp colors.

Sunset:
This setting beautifully reproduces the red of the sunset.

B & W: This setting is for monochrome images.

ISO Settings: ISO is a unit of measurement of sensitivity to light. The larger the
number, the higher the sensitivity. The camera's ISO can be set manually
or automatically. You can set the the camera's Manual ISO to 200,
400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, and 12800. When set to Auto ISO, the camera's ISO ranges from 200-1600.

Built-in Flash: In a dark location, using the built-in flash,
or optional flash, allows
you to shoot the subject brightly, and it also helps prevent blurred photos due
to camera shake. The DSLR-A550 features a pop-up flash, and an accessory shoe
for attaching an optional external flash. The DSLR-A550 offers the following flash modes:

Autoflash: In auto mode the flash
automatically fires if it is dark or against light.

Fill-Flash: In this mode the flash fires
every time the shutter is released.

Slow Sync: Slow sync shooting allows you to shoot a clear image
of both the subject and the background by slowing the shutter speed.

Rear Sync: In rear sync mode, the objects illuminated by
other light sources are captured first, then the flash is fired right before
the exposure is completed.

Wireless: The camera can use the flash light to
transmit signal to an external off-camera flash to produce a more
three-dimensional image. (Requires optional wireless flash unit such as HVL-F58AM,
HVL-F42AM, HVL-F56AM, or HVL-F36AM).

Noise Reduction: The camera offers Long Exposure and High ISO Noise
Reduction (NR) to automatically reduce the grainy noise found in photos during
long exposures or high ISO settings.

Anti-Dust Technology:
Changing lenses in a DSLR can allow dust to enter the camera. To help
keep the CMOS imager cleaner for better pictures, the A550 utilizes a
static-free anti-dust coating on the imager's filter. The camera also has a
cleaning function which vibrates the image sensor for a short time to knock off
any dust that may have settled in the imager.

Included Lens

Lens: The included Sony DT18-55mm F3.5-5.6 SAM (Smooth
Autofocus Motor) lens has a 35mm lens equivalent focal length of 27-82.5mm. The
lens is useful for snapshots, portraits, interiors, and general photography.

Specifications:

Aperture:

Maximum: f/3.5 (wide) to f/5.6 (telephoto)

Minimum: f/22 (wide) to f/36 (telephoto)

Filter Diameter: 55mm

Minimum Focus Distance: 0.25 feet (9.84 inches)

Play And Print Functions

Playback Options: You can view images on
the LCD monitor with 3 options: with recording data
displayed, without recording data, or histogram display. A histogram is the luminance distribution that shows how many pixels of a
particular brightness exists in a picture. The histogram display of this camera
shows the brightness on the horizontal axis (left side is black, right side is
white) and the number of pixels on the vertical axis.

Auto Review: After an image is recorded, you can
have the camera automatically display it on the LCD monitor
for two, five or 10 seconds. You can also turn off auto
review.

Image Rotation: Vertical shots can be
rotated automatically so that they are displayed upright
during playback. This can be done manually or automatically.

Playback Screen: You can view your photos back as
a single image on the LCD monitor, as an Index or as a Slide
Show . During Index Mode you can view 4 or 9 images at
once. You can adjust the Slide Show mode interval from 1, 3,
5, 10, or 30 seconds.

Image Enlargement: During single image playback
you can enlarge an entire image or a select area of an image
from 1.1 to14x depending upon the image size. Small images
can be enlarged up to 7.2x, Medium images to 11x, and
Large images up to 14x. Once you have enlarged the image,
you can pan around the image to view the desired portion.

Rotating Images: Images can be rotated
counter-clockwise 360-degrees on the camera's LCD monitor
during single image playback.

Protect Images: You can protect all images on your
memory card or select only certain images to be protected
from accidental erasure.

HDMI Output: The DSLR-A550 provides
direct mini-HDMI output to your HDTV screen, so you can view
and share photos in clarity and detail. You can choose
between standard 3:2 or widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio. When
connected to a Sony BRAVIA TV, you can control the image
playback using the TV remote. A mini-HDMI-to-HDMI cable is
not supplied.

Printing Options: The camera offers the following
printing options.

DPOF Compatible: Using the camera, you can
specify the images and the number of images to print
before you print images at a photo-shop or with your
printer.

PictBridge Compliant: You can print images by
connecting the camera directly to a PictBridge compliant
printer.

Memory Card: You can print images with a
Memory Stick or CF card compliant printer.

Computer: You can copy images to a computer
using the supplied "Picture Motion Browser" software and
print the images.

Battery Information

InfoLithium Battery:
The DSLR-A550 can take up to 950
shots in the viewfinder mode or approximately 480 images in
the Live View mode on a fully charged NP-FM500H InfoLithium battery
(supplied) with indication in percentage of about how much
battery power remains.

Charging: The supplied InfoLithium battery requires
approximately 235 minutes for a full charge and 175 minutes for a normal charge.
The battery must be fully charged before initial use.

Power Save: You can set different time intervals for the
camera to switch to Power Save mode for the Live View and Viewfinder modes. You
can set each to 10 seconds, 20 seconds, 1 minute, 5 minutes, or 30 minutes. Once
the camera goes into Power Save mode, you can return to the shooting mode by
pressing the shutter button halfway. When the camera is connected to a TV or the
drive mode is set to Remote Commander, the power save mode defaults to 30
minutes regardless of the setting.

Supplied Software

Application Software CD-ROM: Picture Motion Browser Ver.4.3.01, Image Data Lightbox SR Ver.2.1,
and Image Data Converter SR Ver.3.1 software are included with the camera and
are contained and installed from one CD-ROM:

Picture Motion Browser Ver.4.3.01: Windows Only

Import images shot with the
camera and display them on the camera.

Organize images on the computer
on a calendar by shooting date to view them.

Retouch, print, and send images
as e-mail attachments and change the shooting date.

Still images can be printed or saved with the date.

You can create a data disc using a CD burner driver or DVD burner drive.

Image Data Lightbox SR Ver.2.1: Windows and Macintosh

Display and compare RAW/JPEG images recorded with this camera

Rate the images on a scale of five

Display an image in "Image Data Converter SR" and make adjustments to it

Image Data Converter SR Ver.3.1: Windows and Macintosh

You can edit images recorded in
RAW mode with various corrections, such as tone curve, and sharpness.

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